The Media's Assault on Vick

Lately, the image of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick has taken some hits. In the most recent "scandal," police in Virginia raided the home of Vick's cousin and found evidence involving drugs and dog fighting. Even though Vick was not present, does not live in the house, and was not involved in the illegal activities, the media has come down on him because he is the legal owner of the house. Because he did something nice with his money and bought a house for a family member, his name is being dragged through the mud. The media have accused Vick of having character problems and have compared him to Randy Moss, a man who, among other things, bumped a meter maid with his car. Vick has taken this undue criticism in stride and met with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on the day of the NFL Draft to discuss what has been going on. In a nice bit of media relations work, Vick sat down for an interview and said that he will be more careful about the people with whom he associates. The most important thing that Vick has done during all of this has been to maintain his composure. By keeping a level head, he has fended off most of the media's criticism.